


"The Life of Jonathan Strange"

by rubyofkukundu



Category: Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell & Related Fandoms, Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell - Susanna Clarke
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-24
Updated: 2015-10-24
Packaged: 2018-04-27 21:45:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,282
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5065480
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rubyofkukundu/pseuds/rubyofkukundu
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mr Segundus has a new project to show Childermass, which leads to a surprising discussion.</p>
            </blockquote>





	"The Life of Jonathan Strange"

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: This story contains spoilers for the end of the book.

At the beginning of April in 1819, a week or so before Easter, John Childermass and Vinculus travelled south to Yorkshire, there to stay at Starecross Hall for the next fortnight. This was all very usual. Why, for the past two years they had visited Starecross frequently, and had done so ever since Mr John Segundus, master of that place, had invited them to stay. (After the opening of the school for magicians at Starecross in early 1818, Childermass' and Vinculus' visits had taken a very particular form, which is to say that they visited three times a year: at Christmas, at Easter, and over the summer, when Starecross released its students for several weeks at a time, thus affording Mr Segundus the leisure to attend to his guests.1)

And so in April 1819 Childermass and Vinculus came to stay. Is it possible to describe the anticipation and excitement that Mr Segundus felt upon the eve of their visit? Perhaps not, for he was so very full of anticipation and excitement both. The reason for such enthusiasm was easy to understand: for two weeks Mr Segundus was going to have the company of two fellow-magicians; there would be the chance to discuss all sorts of magical happenings and theories, and there would be the chance to study the book of the Raven King in more detail. For one so enamoured of magic as Mr Segundus, there was hardly a greater joy! Although, perhaps, there was _one_ greater, but it was not a joy that Mr Segundus would declare to the world-at-large:

Mr Segundus, as we shall see, found great happiness in the company of John Childermass.

It had happened, oh, some year and a half before this story starts. It was then, at a time when Childermass and Vinculus had both been staying at Starecross, that Mr Segundus and Childermass had come to something of an understanding. This understanding was that, while Mr Segundus and Childermass esteemed each other's knowledge and learning and wit very much, they both happened to esteem each other's bodies a great deal as well. Indeed, this carnal esteem was so profound that they both found it rather expedient to explore this avenue further, by lying together, and kissing, and performing other such acts which two men together really ought not to perform.

This understanding, for good reason, was kept a secret between Mr Segundus and Childermass, but this they were both able to do with ease. They were, after all, both of them given naturally to discretion, and such discretion was helped greatly when they found they could spend so much time together without arousing any suspicion of untoward behaviour. For they had always, even before their understanding, spent most of their days alone together in Mr Segundus' rooms, there talking or working on their own scholarly interests. And while such scholarly pursuits were pleasant to Mr Segundus and Childermass, they were not so to the rest of the household (including Vinculus), who would all of them much rather go about their own business than disturb the dry sight of two men leafing through books or scratching their pens upon pieces of paper. Thus, whenever Mr Segundus and Childermass thought to lock the door and set upon a far more shocking sort of activity, none of the household were any the wiser.

On this crisp, April day it was was late in the evening when Childermass and Vinculus arrived at Starecross, and they had been travelling since first light. The night was setting in as they alighted from their horses, the chill in the air was increasing, and what both men wished for was a fireside, a hearty supper, and a bed. These and other similar comforts Mr Segundus provided happily, for he was always a generous host (even if he happened to be a little economical upon matters concerning only himself). All this being so, there was no time for Mr Segundus and Childermass to find some way of being alone together and Mr Segundus found that he must delay whatever greeting he had been hoping for until the next morning.2

Despite such separation, dawn still deigned to stroke her pink fingers through the sky and soon they all of them (Mr Segundus, Childermass and Vinculus) reconvened around the breakfast table.

Mr Segundus, spreading some butter upon his bread, enquired if Childermass and Vinculus had slept well? To this, Vinculus shrugged and continued in his endeavour to pile more bread rolls upon his plate. As Vinculus was thus engaged, Childermass replied to Mr Segundus that he had slept very well indeed, and he accompanied this with such a sly smile that Mr Segundus found himself blushing rather red (though what thought had caused this blush, only he himself knew).

Vinculus poured himself some tea and gave out a rather weary sigh. He took a gulp from his teacup, swallowed down a chunk of bread, and asked, "Do you mean to poke and prod at me today?"

Mr Segundus hesitated slightly. "Ah. No, Mr Vinculus. Thank you," said he. "I thought rather that..." He flushed further. "Instead of the King's letters, I have a different project that I would like to discuss with Mr Childermass today."

This reply earned another sly smile from Childermass and another sigh (perhaps of relief at being so left alone) from Vinculus. Mr Segundus chose to ignore both of these responses and continued upon his breakfast as stoically as he was able.

When they were done, and Vinculus had left the breakfast table to do whatever it was he did with himself in Starecross' many rooms, both Mr Segundus and Childermass repaired to Mr Segundus' study.

It would not be an understatement to say that Mr Segundus was rather excited about showing Childermass his latest project. Upon entering the study Mr Segundus immediately made his way over to his desk to do just this, but before he could get there he was stopped by the very distinct sound of the door to the study being locked behind him.

Wide-eyed, Mr Segundus turned to see Childermass stepping away from the now-locked door and wearing a very sly smile indeed.

"You wish to reveal a new project to me, do you?" asked Childermass, walking over to where Mr Segundus stood. "I am glad of it, for I greatly desire to experience this 'new project' of yours." Childermass then stepped close and pressed his lips to the corner of Mr Segundus' jaw and his hands to the small of Mr Segundus' back. "Indeed," said Childermass, "I have thought of nothing else for the past week."

"Oh," gasped Mr Segundus. He had meant to say that he had not intended the 'new project' as a euphemism for something else, and that it was in fact a very real and very scholarly endeavour. But instead of all this, to his surprise, he found himself saying, "Mr Childermass, you do not know how long I have yearned to touch you," and then pulling Childermass' head up for a desperate kiss.3

From there it did not take long for them to stumble, while still kissing, through Mr Segundus' study and on into his adjoining bedroom; after which the bedroom door was locked and they both discarded their coats and their waistcoats and their shirts and their... Well. It will be of little interest to us what they chose to do with their time together. Suffice it to say that they were engaged upon it the whole morning, and that there may well have been a little colour in both their cheeks when they emerged at 5 o'clock in time for dinner.

After dinner Mr Segundus and Childermass again retired to Mr Segundus' rooms, and Mr Segundus' new project did not get the airing it deserved then either. Why, one or other of them might sometimes have had an idea, in a natural pause in their engagements, to make a start upon their magical discussions, but not sooner had he done so, and had begun to put on some articles of clothing, than he would be stopped by a word, or a look, or a touch to the shoulder, and suddenly those magical discussions seemed a lot less urgent when compared to a warm body in a warm bed. (We must not forget here that they had not seen each other since Christmas and had a lot of lonely hours for which to make up.)

All this meant that by the time supper was upon them, they had not discussed Mr Segundus' new project once (though I imagine that neither of them felt the lack of it). After supper they both returned to their separate rooms for the night and there we must leave them.

The next morning as they were sat at breakfast, Mr Segundus once again assured Vinculus that they would not require him for their studies that day. Childermass raised his eyebrows at this, which caused Mr Segundus to flush very red. Vinculus, however, seemed to find the news less shocking, and merely sighed as he reached across to help himself to the ham.

And so, once more, after breakfast Mr Segundus and Childermass repaired to Mr Segundus' study. There Childermass once again locked the door behind him, but he did not attempt to embrace Mr Segundus immediately; instead he stood and appeared to wait to see what Mr Segundus would do next, which was this:

"Mr Childermass," said Mr Segundus, wearing a smile, which was growing greater the longer Childermass looked upon him. "Mr Childermass, I would be very grateful if you would take a look at my new project."

"Again?" exclaimed Childermass with a laugh. "I shan't complain, but I will remind you that I am not as young as I once was. Another day like yesterday and I may find it difficult to walk by the end of it."

Mr Segundus laughed in return even as a blush coloured his cheeks. "You mistake me!" said he, making his way over to his desk. "I do, in fact, have a new project that I wish to speak to you about."

Childermass looked rather shocked at this, but it appeared to last only a moment. He followed Mr Segundus to the desk and said, "Are you saying that you did not mean it as a ruse yesterday to get us alone?"

"No indeed!" replied Mr Segundus. "Although," said he, pausing to take a step and press a kiss to Childermass' lips, "I am rather glad that you took it that way."

Childermass smiled. He pulled out a chair from under one side of Mr Segundus' desk and sat down. Mr Segundus, meanwhile, opened one of the desk drawers and rifled through it until he emerged with a sheaf of papers. These he presented to Childermass.

"As you can see," said Mr Segundus with a small smile, "I have started writing my book."

"Ah," said Childermass, looking at the papers in his hand. "You have finally started on the biography of Strange, have you?"4

"Yes," said Mr Segundus, pulling out a chair and sitting on the other side of the desk. "I have done enough research now to make a start. Those are the first three chapters." He flushed slightly. "Mrs Strange has been kind enough to look over them for me and has sent a number of corrections, so I apologise for all the additions and crossings out. It is a very early copy."

Childermass looked up from the papers and Mr Segundus flushed further.

"Mr and Mrs Honeyfoot have been very good to me and have both read it," continued Mr Segundus. "Mr Honeyfoot said he thought it was an... an excellent work, and Mrs Honeyfoot has declared it exactly the sort of thing that a family would wish to read by the fireside." By now Mr Segundus was very red. "Though you must know that Mr and Mrs Honeyfoot have a tendency towards... the exuberant, and so..."

"You think they are flattering you," declared Childermass.

"I think," replied Mr Segundus hesitantly, "that they do not wish to hurt my feelings."

Childermass gave a sharp laugh. "Well then," said he. "And you wish me to read it too?"

"If it wouldn't be too much trouble," said Mr Segundus. "And please don't think that I am looking purely for praise or affirmation. Rather that... Mrs Strange has been very helpful, but she is not a magician and so cannot comment on every detail. And Mr Honeyfoot is a magician but..." Mr Segundus gave Childermass a pained look.

"You do not wish to be flattered?" suggested Childermass.

"Mr Honeyfoot is not the kind of man..." started Mr Segundus, running a hand through his hair. "He does not have the character to... I mean to say: he is quite happy to overlook any mistakes I might make; even obvious ones with the spelling of words."

Childermass laughed and rocked back in his chair. "I can quite understand. Honeyfoot is not a man with an editorial bent." He looked over to Mr Segundus. "So you wish someone to look over your manuscript with a critical eye?"

"If you please," said Mr Segundus, nodding. "I am sure you must have edited very many of Mr Norrell's writings. And even without that experience I am certain you would do it admirably."

Childermass gave Mr Segundus a wry smile.5 "Well then," said Childermass, sitting up straight. "I will be glad to look over it for you, and the other chapters when you have them." He set the papers down upon the desk and made himself comfortable. "You will not be offended, Mr Segundus, if I settle down to read? I will not be very interesting company."

"No. No. Please," said Mr Segundus, waving a hand. "I will not feel ignored."

"And do you mind if I make some notes in the margins?" asked Childermass, looking up and reaching for a pen and a pot of ink.

"Not at all!" replied Mr Segundus.

"Very well," said Childermass. He smiled and Mr Segundus smiled in return.

And so Childermass and Mr Segundus settled down to their work: Childermass to edit the first three chapters of Mr Segundus' book; and Mr Segundus to continue on with the fourth.

It would be fair to say, however, that while Childermass set upon his task with all concentration, Mr Segundus was not so diligent. And, indeed, who could expect Mr Segundus to get much work done when he had more than half his mind taken up with musings upon Childermass and what Childermass thought of his writings?

At first the reflections that distracted Mr Segundus were happy ones, for even though Childermass would sometimes pick up his pen and scratch something in the margin, he was also (whenever Mr Segundus glanced over at him) reading the papers with a smile upon his face. Sometimes the smile grew wider, and on more than one occasion Childermass laughed out loud. It is hard to imagine quite how many pleasant thoughts were roused in Mr Segundus' breast to see Childermass enjoying his writing so!

Unfortunately for Mr Segundus those happy reflections did not remain indefinitely. Mr Segundus could not help looking frequently to Childermass to see how he got on, and as the hours passed Mr Segundus noticed that Childermass' smile began to fade. Indeed, the frequency of Childermass' making notations in the margins did not increase, so he was not perhaps correcting many more things than he had been before, but to look at his face it seemed as if the more of Mr Segundus' writings he read, the less of them he liked. And it was not so long before Childermass' smile had been replaced entirely with a frown.

Oh, poor Mr Segundus! What must he have thought to see such a look upon Childermass' face? At first Mr Segundus tried to rationalise it, saying such things to himself as, "Well, here is a section that I will surely have to rewrite," and, "It is very good that Mr Childermass can discover such troublesome spots now, so I can correct them before I get the manuscript published." Yet, as the time wore on and Childermass' frowns grew, Mr Segundus found it harder and harder to sustain such positive thoughts. Soon he was thinking, "Perhaps I will have to rewrite much more of these chapters than I had first thought," and, "I must ask Childermass how I may make my writing better; assuming, of course, that it will be possible for me to do so." By the time Childermass was nearly done, poor Mr Segundus could think of nothing more than, "I hope Mr Childermass does not think the worse of me for writing so very badly," and, "Perhaps I should give up this endeavour before I get too far; for I would hate to publish a book that was so dislikeable."

These thoughts were beginning to grow so distressing that Mr Segundus had started to studiously avoid looking at Childermass' face any further, and had instead attempted to throw all his concentration into the writing of the fourth chapter of his book (though this was a difficult task in the circumstances, as I'm sure you can imagine).

It was not so much longer until Mr Segundus heard a rustling noise, which sounded rather like a sheet of paper being deposited on the table, followed by a huff of breath.

Glancing up (though he did not much desire to do so) Mr Segundus discovered that Childermass had finished his task, for he was sat back in his chair with his arms folded and was looking over at Mr Segundus. The frown upon Childermass' face, however, had not decreased in the slightest.

What an unhappy sight to behold!

"I am sorry, Mr Childermass!" said Mr Segundus, anxious to repair what damage had been done. His hand was trembling and he put down his pen. "I am sorry for making you read something so very badly written. But, perhaps, if you could tell me where I might..."

"What?" Childermass' frown had deepened. "It is not badly written, Mr Segundus! Quite the opposite: it is very well-written."

Mr Segundus felt a small amount of relief at this, tempered with a great deal of confusion. "Forgive me," said he, "Mr Childermass. But even so, you do not seem as if you have enjoyed it."

Childermass blinked a little, as if he were shocked at this news, but then he huffed and said, "No. I am not sure that I did enjoy it."

"Oh." Mr Segundus' spirits fell even further. He opened his mouth to ask just what was so wrong with his writing, but he was halted when Childermass spoke:

"I find," said Childermass, "that I am jealous."

"Oh!" cried Mr Segundus, realisation dawning. "Oh! Mr Childermass, I am so sorry! I did not realise that...! You should have said!" Mr Segundus nearly rose from his chair with the strength of his apologies. "Oh, but it was foolish of me not to realise that you too wanted to write a biography of Mr Strange! I had thought that you knew about my intentions to publish but I must not have been clear enough. And you knew Mr Strange so well when he was Mr Norrell's pupil! Forgive me, indeed, Mr Childermass." Mr Segundus picked up the unfinished fourth chapter and rifled through the pages. "We may rewrite this together, if you wish, and become joint authors? Or maybe you wish to take it all upon yourself? Perhaps it is only right that you do so, and if I can help you with the research that I have already completed..." He looked up to find Childermass sporting a smile (though it was not a very happy one).

"No, Mr Segundus," said Childermass wearily. "I have no desire to write a biography of Strange. That is your work; not mine." He sighed. "You will find that I am not jealous of you. The person I am jealous of," said he, "is Strange."

Mr Segundus frowned. "Jealous of Mr Strange?"

"Tell me," said Childermass, "was there very much romance in your friendship with him?"

"Oh!" exclaimed Mr Segundus again, and his face grew very red indeed. "Romance? Oh, Mr Childermass, no! I... Mr Strange was a married man! I could never...!"

"And if he had not been married?" asked Childermass. He glanced briefly at the three chapters he had laid upon the table and then looked back up. "I knew you had been friends, but I had not realised quite how close you were. You write about him with such admiration and affection, Mr Segundus; it is sung from every page."

Poor Mr Segundus appeared to be very distressed to hear such a thing. He shook his head. "Even if Mr Strange had not been married," said he, "that does not mean that I... That he..." Mr Segundus rubbed his fingers across his mouth. "Mr Strange was so very great a practical magician, and I am so very...! There is not anything to suggest that Mr Strange would ever have wished to..."

"So _he_ might not have wanted to," said Childermass. "But if he had been willing? What then?"

To this, Mr Segundus said nothing, but the colour that rushed into his cheeks was perhaps more telling than any confession which could have left his lips.

Childermass sighed and seemed to sag in his chair as he did so. He unfolded his arms. "You do see," said he, his expression softening, "how very unfair to you I am being?"

Mr Segundus looked at him.

"It seems," said Childermass, "that I am jealous for something that never happened. And even if it had, I would have no just cause to resent it. After all, when you and Strange were close, you and I did not know each other anywhere near as well as we do now." Childermass gave Mr Segundus a frank look. "It is all in the past, sir. Strange is no longer with us so I can hardly, in fairness, complain of him as a rival now." Here, Childermass sighed. "Yet knowing all that, I still find myself jealous." He smiled a wry smile. "It is not rational in the slightest, Mr Segundus, but since when have lovers ever been rational in their thoughts?"

Mr Segundus' eyes went very wide. "Lovers?" he said, and his voice cracked upon the word.

"Ay," replied Childermass, laughing. "That is what we are, are we not?" He looked to Mr Segundus, and the laughter appeared to die upon his lips.

It is perhaps not possible to look more shocked than Mr Segundus did at that moment. His mouth was open and it seems as if his complexion did not know whether to turn pale or to blush red and had instead decided to do both simultaneously, leaving his face a blotchy pink.

Childermass' countenance grew very grave. He put a hand to his mouth. "Forgive me," said he after a moment. "Mr Segundus, I see I have presumed too much." He looked to the window-sill and cleared his throat. "I had thought that we... But it does not matter what I thought."

"No!" cried Mr Segundus, leaning forwards on the table and catching his sleeves upon papers and pencils and pens in his haste. "No, Mr Childermass. You are not wrong. You have not presumed to much." And now it seems as if the war between palor and colour in Mr Segundus' complexion was over and that the colour had won out, for he was very red indeed. "You cannot imagine," said he, "Mr Childermass, with what esteem I hold you, and how much affection... _true_ affection I have for you." He licked his lips. "But I did not think that... I had not dared to hope that you..."

The solemnity upon Childermass' face faded a little. "Was it not obvious?" asked Childermass, beginning upon a wry smile. "I had rather thought that it was, given our actions."

"I... I..." said Mr Segundus. He looked down at his hands. "You are so very knowledgeable, Mr Childermass," said he. "You are a very fine magician. And you know so many other fine magicians and good people." Here, Mr Segundus took a breath. "You have been enormously kind to come to Starecross so often. But I had thought..."

Childermass laughed. "You thought, perhaps, that I have a magician in every county who will provide me with food and board, as you do, and some carnal pleasures besides?"

Mr Segundus did not reply to this, but the guilty look upon his face suggested that he had, indeed, thought this very thing.

Childermass' amusement softened. "It is true, Mr Segundus, that I have the acquaintance of other magicians, some of whom are kind enough to provide Vinculus and I with lodgings when we need them. But you may rest assured that there is nowhere I wish to visit more than Starecross, and no magician whose opinions I respect or whose company I enjoy more than I do yours." He smiled. "And when it comes to carnal relations, not to mention my tenderness of feeling, I can say without a doubt that you, sir, are entirely unique."

"Oh," replied Mr Segundus, and he looked on Childermass with wide, wondering eyes. "Oh, Mr Childermass." And Mr Segundus stood and hurried around the desk until he could take both of Childermass' hands in his own and say, breathlessly, "I need to kiss you, Mr Childermass. Please may I kiss you?"

To this Childermass laughed and, squeezing Mr Segundus' fingers, obliged him.

They kissed a great deal after that, with Mr Segundus' hands in Childermass' hair and Childermass' hands at Mr Segundus' collar. Indeed, the kiss lasted for so long that soon they found it less to their liking to have the both of them perched upon the one chair (with Mr Segundus sat upon Childermass' knee), so they stood, lacing their fingers together, and made their way into Mr Segundus' bedroom to kiss some more in the comfort of Mr Segundus' bed.

Once there they continued upon this pastime for even longer and did not seem to tire of it in the slightest. It was many minutes more before the kiss was broken and they pulled back to lie in each other's arms, looking for all the world as content as it is possible for two people to be.

Yet perhaps they weren't as content as had first seemed, or at least Mr Segundus might not have been. He ran his fingers over the worn collar of Childermass' coat, watching it from where he lay with his head upon Childermass' shoulder. After a while of this he shifted slightly and said, "Mr Childermass, I hope that now you will no longer be plagued by any jealousy."

"Oh no," said Childermass unconcernedly. "I find that I am just as jealous as I was before."

"Ah," replied Mr Segundus unhappily. He considered Childermass' collar some more, then sat up so as to look at him more clearly. "In that case," said Mr Segundus, "you must tell me what I should do to relieve you of it. If there is any way I can..."

"You need do nothing, sir," said Childermass. "The jealousy is entirely my problem and not yours. It is I who must find some way to be rid of it; not you."

"But," countered Mr Segundus, "I would not like to see you so..."

Childermass laughed then, and sat up so that he might circle his arms around Mr Segundus' waist. "I have told you that it is irrational, Mr Segundus. All I need do is remind myself how irrational it is."

Mr Segundus leaned back slightly to look at him.

"For example," continued Childermass, grinning, "I must remind myself that it is I, and not Strange, who has the privilege of kissing you until your lips turn red." He touched a thumb to the corner of Mr Segundus' mouth (and indeed, it was not just his lips but Mr Segundus' whole face which was now turning red). "And it is I, and not Strange, who may hold you in my arms upon this bed." Childermass pulled Mr Segundus closer and Mr Segundus acquiesced with the beginnings of a smile upon his face.

"It is I," said Childermass, "who may run his hands through your hair." This, Childermass did. "It is I who may kiss at your jaw." Childermass did this also, which caused Mr Segundus to let out a light laugh. "It is I..." Childermass brought his fingers up to untie Mr Segundus neckcloth. "...who may do this..." And, indeed, Childermass continued on and on, demonstrating all the things that he might do, which Strange could not.

The details of these activities will not be as interesting to us as they were to those involved, so we shall not bore ourselves with them. Suffice it to say that at the end of the demonstration, both Mr Segundus and Childermass were a good deal more undressed than they had been before, and that they lay beneath the bedclothes in each other's arms with what looked to be an expression of great happiness (and a goodly amount of colour) upon both their faces.

It was a while before either of them spoke, for they both appeared to be content with holding each other and nothing more. Yet silence cannot last forever, and when it was finally broken it was Childermass who did so. "You must show me the fourth chapter of your book when you have finished writing it, Mr Segundus" said he. "And the following chapters also. If I am not at Starecross then you must post them to me; wherever I am, I shall look over them for you."

"Oh!" Mr Segundus' eyes widened. He turned in Childermass' arms so that he could face him. "That is very kind of you, Mr Childermass, but you needn't do that. I know you didn't enjoy the first three chapters. It would be cruel of me to force the rest of the book upon you."

Childermass gave him a soft smile. "My lack of enjoyment was due only to my jealousy, and I have already told you that I mean to overcome it."

"But it will not help you if the remaining chapters exacerbate the feeling." Mr Segundus shook his head. "It is fine. I will find someone else to read the chapters for me so I won't have to trouble you with them."

"Mr Honeyfoot and his flattery, perhaps?" asked Childermass with a long grin, which caused Mr Segundus to flush up redder than he had been before.

"Well... perhaps not Mr Honeyfoot," confessed Mr Segundus. "But I shall ask around. I am sure there will be some magician who..."

"There is no need," said Childermass. "I will read them for you."

"Oh, but..."

"Mr Segundus," said Childermass firmly, "did I not tell you that the first three chapters were very well-written? And I am sure that the rest of the book will be the same." He stroked a hand down Mr Segundus' arm and smiled his smile. "Your writing is instructive without being dull, sir, and lively without being flippant. Even were it not about a topic as interesting to me as magic, I would still read your book with great delight. And, indeed, read it I shall. For if you do not let me read your book now, then you can rest assured that I will buy the first copy as soon as it is published and read it all then!"

Mr Segundus stared at him wonderingly. "You would do such a thing?"

"Of course," replied Childermass. "I am not going to stand by and ignore the greatest magical book to be published this century."

Mr Segundus laughed then (and his cheeks grew brighter still). "And you accuse Mr Honeyfoot of flattery!" he exclaimed. Mr Segundus covered the hand at his arm with his own. "But it is kind of you to say so, Mr Childermass. Thank you."

Childermass gave Mr Segundus an amused look. "I assure you that I don't mean it as mere flattery, Mr Segundus. Not in the slightest." He grinned. "Must I temper every compliment with a criticism in order for you to believe me?"

Mr Segundus was wearing a smile of his own. "Yes," he agreed. "Yes, I think you will have to."

"Well then," said Childermass, stopping to give Mr Segundus a brief kiss. "You are wrong when it comes to Strange's first meeting with Norrell. I see that Mrs Strange has told you it was held on a Monday, but I can assure you that it was actually held on a Wednesday."

"Oh!" said Mr Segundus. He frowned. "Was it?"

"Most definitely," replied Childermass. "It is not a day that I will forget in a hurry."

"No," said Mr Segundus with a smile, "I suppose not." And Mr Segundus fell to asking Childermass all about Norrell's first impressions of Strange, which conversation continued on for some time.

Here we shall leave them. If you find that you too are interested in Strange and Norrell's first meeting, then you would do well to buy Mr Segundus' book and read it for yourself.6 For Mr Segundus applied himself conscientiously to the task of writing and a year later his biography of Strange was ready for publication by Mr Murray.

As predicted by Childermass the book proved to be very popular; so much so that a second printing was required before six months were out and Mr Segundus found himself commissioned by Mr Murray to make a start on another book.7

Of the many who read Mr Segundus' biography of Strange, it is likely that there were very few who would have taken the leisure to peruse the title pages, dedications and other front matter of the book before jumping straight into the first chapter. Yet, if any person had decided to read these preliminaries, they might have noticed something a little odd.

For, you see, when it came to dedications, the book had two. The first was quite unremarkable and was dedicated to:

 _Mrs. A. Strange_  
_For All Her Help and_  
_Her Kindness with the Same_

The second dedication, however, was of a more unexpected sort (or at least it would have been unexpected to anyone who did not know the author), for it was dedicated to:

 _Mr. J. Childermass_  
_A Dear, Dear Friend_

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1\. Did not the owner of the school, one Mrs Lennox, disapprove of her property being used for hospitality in this way? Not at all. Indeed, she encouraged it. For, what magical school would not benefit from its master's being in close connection with an increasingly well-known magician (this being Childermass) and the most sought-after magical book in the country (this being Vinculus)? (Go back)

2\. And how difficult Mr Segundus found it to sleep that evening! To know that Childermass, whom he had not seen for months, was under the same roof, and yet to have had only the briefest of conversations with him over their late supper! Poor Mr Segundus, even though his room was warm and his bed was comfortable, found that he tossed and turned upon his mattress all night long. (Go back)

3\. We cannot blame Mr Segundus for this. For who wishes to enter upon a scholarly discussion when they might instead please themselves with an eager body which has been withheld from them for many months? (Go back)

4\. This was not a great, intuitive leap for Childermass to make. All of Mr Segundus' acquaintances knew that he had been gathering materials and researching into the details of Jonathan Strange's life in preparation to write a biography. It was a project that had already occupied Mr Segundus for many many hours. Indeed, if there was anything of Mr Segundus' that he could be said to look upon with pride (if only a small amount) then it was 'his book'. This work had been so much a part of Mr Segundus' life for the past year or so that Childermass would have been a very poor friend had he not known what Mr Segundus was referring to upon an instant. (Go back)

5\. It was a smile which suggested, perhaps, that no matter how many first, second or third drafts Childermass had looked over for Mr Norrell, Mr Norrell had never quite found it within himself to publish any of them. (Go back)

6\. _The Life of Jonathan Strange_ by John Segundus, pub. John Murray, London, 1820. (Go back)

7\. This should not be so very surprising. Not only was the biography of Strange well-written and lively and all the things that Childermass had said it was. It also had the advantage of being about one of the most romantic figures of the age. (For, during his eight years in the public eye, Strange had managed, amongst other things, to become a hero of the British Army, to start a magical feud with his tutor, to have his wife abducted by fairies, to turn mad, and to vanish from the world inside a tower of eternal darkness.) Perhaps Mrs Honeyfoot was the most accurate when she described the book as being one which families would like to read beside the fire. For the book's audience was not restricted to magicians. No indeed. In fact, it has been remarked by several of the more satirical among us that there can hardly be a young woman left in England who has not read Strange's biography and sighed to herself over some passage or another. (Go back)


End file.
